Karen Hauer is in high spirits as she departs her hotel with new boyfriend Simon Davidson following Strictly Come Dancing show in Birmingham

Karen Hauer looked in good spirits as she left her hotel with new boyfriend Simon Davies after performing on Strictly Come Dancing in Birmingham on Sunday.

The professional dancer, 41, who split from husband of 16 months Jordan Wyn-Jones last year, cut a casual figure in a lilac hoodie and beige track pants.

She wrapped herself in a long khaki coat and stayed comfortable in a pair of white trainers as she pushed her suitcase as ex-rugby player Simon followed.

Karen wore a black baseball cap and also carried a large backpack. Simon – who works as a senior sports marketing manager for Adidas – wore a gray hoodie with black cargo pockets.

It comes as the couple confirmed their romance with a cozy outing ahead of Friday night’s first Strictly live tour show.

The dancer is said to have enjoyed a recent romantic getaway with the personal trainer after being introduced by co-star Gorka Marquez and his partner Gemma Atkinson.

A source said The mirror: ‘Karen and Simon have a lot in common, so when Gemma and Gorka introduced them, we hit it off straight away.

‘Karen wanted to take things slow and at first they were friends for a while. But gradually it became romantic, and although they have tried to keep their relationship quiet, they are now a real couple.’

They added: Karen’s friends and family are thrilled as 2023 has been an incredibly difficult year for her and all they want is to see her happy.’

MailOnline contacted a representative for Karen for comment at the time.

Karen and her estranged husband Jordan got married in 2022 and described the ceremony at the time as a ‘fairy tale’, but sources claim the couple went their separate ways after a ‘difficult time’.

Karen’s estranged husband Jordan later told how their relationship crumbled just 16 months after their wedding day when Karen went to rehearsals and left him at home.

He told The Mail on Sunday: ‘It’s a bit of a love story, a sad story. I am incredibly sad that I am not in Karen’s life, and not on this journey with her, but we are not a good fit in terms of her career.

‘I will always admire her for her career, but it has taken a lot from her. She’d be gone and I’d be home alone.’

Central to their breakup was that his desire to start a family conflicted with Karen’s commitment to the show as its longest-serving professional, it was claimed.

After talking about having children, they moved from Karen’s home in Wimbledon, south-west London, to the north of England, where they settled in the countryside with their four dogs.

But Jordan said their relationship became a series of video and phone calls while his wife, an American-Venezuelan ballroom champion, traveled around the country.

“Karen is dedicated to her career, which she has worked very hard for,” Jordan said. “She’s amazing and I admire her for that. That’s one of the reasons I wanted to marry her – because of how powerful she is.

‘But we wanted different things. There was a plan to have children, but there was no plan.

“When we first met, we discussed it. You say things like: ‘I want to have children’. And she had told me that she would like to have children with me. But in the interview, Karen said, “Children are not the future” – which made me sad. I’ve always wanted to be a father.

‘I wouldn’t say it was a shock, but I knew subconsciously in the back of my mind…why would she want to have a child with me?

‘I had become vacant in our relationship. I was loving and caring towards her, but I was vacant because of the situation we were in.”

Jordan said they broke down in tears when she admitted their marriage was over: “There were tears on both sides. Lots of tears and sadness. We didn’t want to let go of each other, but we weren’t right for each other either.

‘If we had stayed together and not had a family, I feel like I would have hated her. This is the perfect time for us to love and leave each other.”